THE first phase of BAA Stansted's £50million terminal extension was opened ahead of schedule yesterday. The extension provides nearly 6,000 square metres of additional space for arriving passengers, including a sixth baggage reclaim belt and extra desk space for immigration control.

THE first phase of BAA Stansted's £50million terminal extension was opened ahead of schedule yesterday.

The extension provides nearly 6,000 square metres of additional space for arriving passengers, including a sixth baggage reclaim belt and extra desk space for immigration control.

Further phases, to be opened by December, will include new shops, more comfortable waiting areas, and new facilities for those requiring onward travel by bus, coach, train or taxi.

The extension will be carbon neutral following installation of a state-of-the-art biomass heating boiler, one of the largest of its kind in commercial use in the UK.

Nick Barton, Stansted's strategy director, said: “At peak times we can expect over 3,300 arriving passengers an hour through the terminal, so this new extension is all about us continuing to provide the best possible facilities for passengers.

“This means meeting the travel demands of today as well as planning ahead for passenger growth in the future which is forecast to see numbers rise to 35 million a year by 2015.”